The New York Times reported that in a series of interviews conducted on Sunday, the top aides of President Donald Trump emphasized that the tariff exemptions placed on the chips that power computers, smartphones, and other electronic devices are temporary and that they could be subjected to their own duties in the future.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection agency released a list late Friday of tariff codes that are exempt from import taxes. The list featured 20 categories of products, including the 8471 broad code that covers all computers, laptops, and disc drives, as well as automatic data processing. The list included flat panel displays, memory chips, semiconductor devices, and equipment.
NBC’s Meet the Press reported that on Sunday, White House senior trade adviser Peter Navarro said they were “not exceptions” and added that the Trump administration can still impose tariffs.
Howard Lutnick, the Commerce Secretary, told ABC Sunday that Trump may announce new tariffs for semiconductors “within the next two months.”
Navarro’s and Lutnick’s statements came on the same day China reacted, calling the exemptions a “small move by the U.S. correcting its wrong practice unilateral ‘ reciprocal Tariffs’.” Trump increased tariffs against Chinese imports to 145% on Wednesday.
The Times reported that Kevin Hassett of the White House National Economic Council told CNN’s State of the Union on Sunday that “always it is the case” that the tariffs for chips can be different.
Hassett stated, “Semiconductors are an important component of many defense products. I don’t think there should be any surprises.”
Trump replied that he would give his answer on Monday when asked about the reasons behind the exemptions for semiconductors.
“We’ll be very specific on Monday… we’re taking in a lot of money, as a country, we’re taking in a lot of money,” he added.
The Times reported that Wedbush Securities’ analyst Dan Ives wrote in a note Sunday to investors about the “mass confusion” created by the constant flow of news coming out of the White House. This creates chaos and uncertainty for companies who are trying to plan the supply chain, their inventory, and their demand.
